More Than Bread

Send me a Text Message!Christmas is nothing more than a shopping spree, if there isn't something more to come. Right? We celebrate the first waiting in hopes of a second coming? And in our world of chaos, confusion, and conflict, we need to be reminded that God's not done. Come Lord Jesus! The story didn't end with a baby in a manger. It didn't even end with an empty tomb. God is still writing His story of redemption, andthere's more to come. Christmas is not just about what God hasdone, but what He's doing and will do. So come Lord Jesus!The story that began in Bethlehem is far from over. The babe wrapped in swaddling clothes is the same cosmic King who will one day return, wrapped in glorious splendor. The humble carpenter from Nazareth is the cosmic Christ who will make all things new. There's more to come, but we could easily ask, "What's taking Him so long?" This episode will provide at least part of the answer.

Send me a Text Message!When I ponder Christmas, and this story that Jesus told in Matthew 25, well let me turn it a bit and say this first of all. If you find yourself in need, if you find yourself in "least of these" kind of way, Jesus is so close. This story is a Christmas word of hope to every person listening who feels helpless, hopeless or homeless.  Jesus said, whenever you serve the least of these, you served me.  If you find yourself today in a least of these kind of way, Jesus is so close.  He identifies with you.  He sees you. He knows you. He loves you.But this story is also a challenge for all of us, even those of us who find ourselves in a "least of these" kind of way, to look for Jesus in face of those around us who are broken and in need. In fact I might say it like this, "Your neighbor in need might be the only Jesus you see this Christmas." 

Send me a Text Message!Lee Stroebel shares a Christmas story that ends with this summary. And at that moment, something inside of me wanted desperately to know this Jesus because, in a sense, I saw him in Perfecta and her granddaughters.  They had peace despite poverty, while I had anxiety despite plenty; they knew the joy of generosity, while I only knew the loneliness of ambition; they looked heavenward for hope, while I only looked out for myself; they experienced the wonder of the spiritual, while I was shackled to the shallowness of the material and something made me long for what they had. Or, more accurately, for the One they knew.In this episode, I'll tell their story, so that we can add to our Christmas prayer, "Come Lord Jesus and give me a heart like Grandma Perfecta!"

Send me a Text Message!Christmas is an invitation to thirsty people to come and drink. But it's also an invitation to people who have found the living water to become life-givers. Both invitations are open to everyone, with only condition; you have to be thirsty. Are you thirsty for life? If so, where are you going to get full? Where are you going to satisfy your soul thirst?My prayer for this Christmas is that we will discover that Jesus can and only Jesus can quench our soul-thirst!

Send me a Text Message!We are beginning an advent series with this episode. At advent we celebrate the waiting that led to his birth. But Christmas is nothing more than a shopping spree, if there isn't something more to come. Right? We celebrate the first waiting in  hopes of a 2nd coming? And in our world of chaos, confusion, and conflict, we need to be reminded that God's not done. The story didn't end with a baby in a manger. It didn't even end with an empty tomb. God is still writing His story of redemption, and there's more to come. Christmas is not just about what God hasdone, but what He's doing and will do. Do you understand? There's more to come.My hope with this advent series is that a three word prayer found at the end of the whole Bible, would become our Christmas prayer. "Come Lord Jesus." 

Send me a Text Message!Psalm 77 is the heart cry of a person who is waiting for bad stuff to stop and good stuff to start. He has found himself in a season of deep trouble, days when God seems absent at best, times when he cries out to God but finds no comfort for his soul. But even in this deep trouble, he finds a way to practice gratitude. How about you, have you find a way, even in deep trouble, to still be grateful? That's the focus of this gratitude pause.

Send me a Text Message!As we enter the holiday season, I just want to focus for a moment on the word, bless. Psalm 67 uses that word alot. "May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine on us." "God our God blesses us. May God bless us still." I'm sure that they aren't the only ones who use the phrase, but a family that used to attend Calvary, the Norwood's are the first ones who I heard use it, --BBB--  "Blessed Beyond Belief." It's not a bad phrase to carry around in our hearts as we make our way through the Christmas season, as we shop and sing and bake and eat...and eat...and eat...It's a good thing to be reminded that in so many ways that don't require a credit card or a receipt, we have been blessed beyond belief.  In this episode and the next I just want to give us a pause for gratitude!

Send me a Text Message!"Seek first the Kingdom of God." That's our final challenge for this series. We don't use the word Kingdom very much today, but in Jesus' day they used it all the time.  They understood a little bit better than we do, what a Kingdom was all about.  See in a biblical sense, everyone has a kingdom.  Your kingdom is whatever you  control. Your Kingdom is that part of your life where what you say goes. Dallas Willard calls it "the range of your effective will." Throughout life we have this inclination to protect and maybe even expand our kingdoms.  So what are your little kingdoms?  You might have more than one.  Some people are bold and obvious about kingdom-building; some people are sneaky and subtle about it. But we all have a little kingdom or two that we are trying to build. The question is am I living for my little kingdom, or am I living for His Big Kingdom?

Send me a Text Message!In this episode we going to focus on a promise and a challenge from Jesus. The promise is "Where your treasures lead, your heart will follow." The challenge is "so put your treasures in heaven, because your heart is made for heaven." Where your treasures lead your heart will follow. So where are you storing your treasures? Where is your heart? In the grand scheme of collecting stuff and counting stuff and saving stuff and spending stuff, whatever you do, don't lose your heart!

Send me a Text Message!Sometimes we make prayer so complicated! And yes, there are depths to prayer that I may never fully explore or understand, because there are depths to God that will ever be mysterious to me. But at the same time, there is meant to be a simplicity and an ease to prayer that is the ease of a son or daughter coming to their Father, their Papa God.  Stop trying to earn it.  You can't anyway, but we don't come into His presence because we earn it.  We come in because He loves us. We come in because it's home.Call out to him today. It may be that your prayer is nothing more than, "Daddy come here! But listen for His voice deep in your heart, He wants to be with you. Just let Father God love you.

Send me a Text Message!I believe that the most important part of Jesus teaching on prayer in Matthew 6:5-15 is the Father part. When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray hesaid, "Ok, when you pray...say Father."  Much of the Lord's prayer was not all that different from the standard Jewish liturgical prayers of the day; one big difference, "When you pray, call Him Father." When Jesus lived, what he had to say about God blew away the routine categories of God-pictures.  The father-truth shaped  everything Jesus said and did. It certainly shaped his prayer life. But then this this amazing thing happens, Jesus passes it on to us. "Not only my Father, your Father.  God is your Father." So here's my question, What if I learned to pray like his kid? 

Send me a Text Message!I think our greatest problem is a Sin-Soaked Heart. It keeps us from thriving, leads to addiction, ravages marriages and breaks families, it hardens hearts & creates anxiety filled minds, it drains joy and reaps discouragement..it causes us to hate or even worse ignore our neighbors. We sacrifice our kids on the altar of success and we care about so much that matters so little.  Yet in the midst of my sin, my greatest hope is that we are relentlessly pursued by a lavishly gracious, greatly merciful, fiercely loyal, patiently loving God. And every time our hearts get soaked in sin, it's time to run like little kids to our Father's arms.What is an oopster, listen in and you'll find out. But realize up front, it's far better to be His kid, than an oopster! 

Send me a Text Message!How many of us have a problem? I wonder if you could make a case that we are defined, at least in part, by the problems we embrace. What's your problem? Sometimes we call it a holy discontent; an external problem so deep in your heart that it's hard to go to sleep without pondering it's solution. Maybe it's not just your problem, it's broader and you want to see it solved for others. What's your  problem? Perhaps it's lonliness, or depression or orphans or world hunger or racism, or fill-in the blank. Can I tell what I think Jesus would say? And if Jesus would say it, than it might be a problem that goes even deeper, all the way to the core of our humanity; a meta-problem. I think Jesus would say, "Your problem is you have a broken heart." And you know what, our broken heart is Jesus holy discontent. He came to give us a new heart!

Send me a Text Message!I know sometimes "the church" is a mess & right now it's nowhere near the center of attention in central PA (or wherever you live). But "the church" is where eternity is aimed. If you hate the church, heaven's going to be a bit awkward. The sermon on the mount is the blueprint for the life of the church because it's all about becoming like Jesus.Could that be our greatest problem today? Can I tell you why we aren't the centerof attention in central PA? Why our neighbors aren't running to Jesus? Why each succeeding generation has been more skeptical of and less connected to church? Isn't it because, at least sometimes, we don't look a whole lot like Jesus? If that's the case, we don't need to restructure, reform or renew, we just need to reJesus!

Send me a Text Message!When my daughter Katy was about 3, for a season of time, one of her favorite prayers was, "And God please help me fly."  She had watched the movie Dumbo. I  was just glad she wasn't asking God for big ears! But that's my prayer at the end of this episode. God please help us to fly. Give us a love that soars. This is the dream on the heart of Christ for his church. That our love would soar. That we would be known for the size of our hearts.Listen, we can do this. I believe that the church is standing at a defining moment in the Kingdom of God. Our culture has perfected turning neighbors into enemies. But in the midst of the division, in the midst of the enemy-making, you can love in a way that amazes people. You can even love your enemies. God please help us fly!

Send me a Text Message!Jesus once said that we would be known as His apprentices by how we love. You are not know as Jesus followers by how you dress or where you live or how successful you are, certainly not by how you vote, but by how you love. Some of you grew up with those four letters, WWJD (What Would Jesus Do). They were meant to be a guideline for life, but sometimes I think it's helpful to ask WIJD (What is Jesus dreaming). What is Jesus dreaming?What matters to Jesus? What's his prayer for us? What's on His heart? What are his hopes and dreams for us. His dream for you starts with your heart. Your heart. Time and again, over and over, we see in scripture that before God releases a dream.  He always shapes a heart. What is Jesus dreaming? I think he's dreaming of a people who live different with a different heart.

Send me a Text Message!As we finish the story of Louis Zamperini...let me say this, "I don't know your story, I don't know your life, I don't know your hurt, your trauma, or your sin, but I do know that the grace of Christ is greater and goes deeper and heals more." And when real-life grace flows into your life from Christ and out of your life to others, you will be a real-life blessing. Paul writes these words in 2 Corinthians 9:6,"The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work." That's what I want. I want a don't-quit, gritty, astoundingly generous grace that will cause me to abound in every good work! How about you?

Send me a Text Message!Astonishing generosity. In the midst of NT Wright's book, entitled, Jesus and the Victory of God, he uses those two words to describe a key characteristic that Jesus' expected of his followers. Astonishing generosity. Let those two words roll around in your brain a bit, those who follow Jesus should be marked by astonishing generosity, not just marked by the astonishing generosity of Jesus to us, but because of his generosity to us, we should be marked by our astonishing generosity to others. Now Wright isn't talking about money. It would perhaps be a bit easier if it was just money. He's talking about a more difficult kind of generosity. Grace. Forgiveness those who betray us. Loving our enemies. When it comes to that kind of generosity, ask yourself, "Has my generosity ever astonished anyone?"

Send me a Text Message!My goal and prayer for this episode as we are coming to the end of Jesus' mountain-top message is that we would love His Words. It's that simple. There's no breakthrough without His Words. We won't thrive in the storms of life without His Words. So we listen to the words of Jesus, we learn His principles and practices, and then we lean in by relentlessly responding. Listen, learn and lean. Without His Words, we will not live different.This episode is my message from this weekend at Calvary...I hope it helps you thrive in the storms!

Send me a Text Message!Hypocrisy is hiding what's inside. Authenticity is transparency, revealing what's inside. But integrity goes deeper, integrity requires a transformation of what's inside. And here's the blessing of integrity; when we get real with God, the real God shows up. Can I tell you what I fear most? I fear missing out on the real God showing up. I want to experience God's presence.  I want to be a conduit of God's power.  I want to experience God at work in our community in supernatural ways.I want to see the real God show up, but what if it requires our getting real with God?

Send me a Text Message!It's a question of integrity. When you see the brilliant reds of a maple tree in the  fall, you don't have to guess if they are hanging on an oak tree. When you are out hunting and you see horns, you don't need to guess the gender of the deer.  Because in God's creation, what's on the outside is a good indicator of what's on the inside. But when it comes to people, that's not always the case. Sometimes the outside lies. There's no integrity. Integrity is not only speaking the truth, it's being true. It's the outside truly reflecting what's on the inside.So that's the question, "Does my outside match my inside?"  

Send me a Text Message!If I could say anything to you, that you will remember from this episode, it's simply this, "Just let God love you." That's where a life that thrives gets it's start. We love because He first loved us. Let Him love you. Don't put up walls, keep your heart soft.  Toward him and others.  Let grace heal wounds and even overflow in the broken places around you.  Let his forever-love be your journey's guard and guide.  Let His love give you boldness to approach Him on behalf of your marriage and any broken marriages around you. Let His love give shape to your soft heart!

Send me a Text Message!In this two verses Jesus deals with an area of brokennes, sin and failure that is all too often all too common in our world today. Divorce. He goes from adultery to divorce. In this episode we'll start by talking about marriage and the heart of a wedding and from there will be a challenge to guard your heart. But here's the deal, we don't guard our hearts by hardening our hearts...because when it comes to the pain of divorce...Everyone needs a soft heart.

Send me a Text Message!At Calvary in our current series "Live Different" we are nearing the end of Jesus' mountain-top message. Which means we are nearing the end of this podcast series, but...we still probably have 8-10 more episodes to go. So buckle up and enjoy the ride! :)This episode is the most recent message I gave at Calvary. It's a look at the "narrow way with a narrow gate" and the "broad way with a wide gate." It's a challenge to make the "master-choice." It was a pretty powerful weekend at Calvary, maybe God will use it to speak to you as well. If so, I would love to hear what God is doing in your life. Feel free to do the "fan mail" (not a fan of that name :) or send me an email to dan@calvarysc.org

Send me a Text Message!As we get into this episode on sex, lust and adultery... you may be asking the question, "How far will God go to love me?" That's the question I'll be answering before we put this episode to bed. And to be honest, my best answer is simply this. The cross is our reminder that God will go so far as to come down and give his life for you to show you his love. God will go so far as a cross to pursue us with all our heart. Never forget that truth!

Send me a Text Message!Our next section of Jesus' mountain-top message is on sex, adultery, and lust. And let me just say upfront, that one of the reasons why this is such a tough and tender topic is because there are so many people crying on the inside. Something you did, something done to you, a decision you regret, sometimes there's this deep sense of hidden inner shame.  You're crying on the inside. And if that's you, you need to hear these words of Jesus within a context of knowing that he knew that this topic could bring so many people tears on the inside. And you need to know, there was more compassion in his heart that day on that mountain than your heart could ever contain. Because in the end, it's not really all about sex, it's about knowing and being known by the giver of life!

Send me a Text Message!Do I truly value relationships? You will hear some form of that question over and over again in this episode. If you want to be the light of the world, if you want to be a real life blessing, if you want to be a reconciler with a heart that won't quit, you have to make relationships a priority. If you know anything about religion in Jesus day, presenting a sacrifice was a big deal. The common people had the  opportunity to present a sacrifice maybe 2-3 times a year. It was a big deal, big, big deal, not like Sunday worship, or even monthly communion. Jesus said, "If you are right in the middle of even your most important religious tradition and you  remember that someone's got something against you; stop the religious stuff and go make things right. Now. Don't wait. Because reconciled relationships matter more than religious routines. So ask yourself, "Do I truly value, even treasure relationships?"

Send me a Text Message!In talking about his football team, the legendary coach Vince Lombardi once said, "The difference between mediocrity and greatness is the feeling these guys have for each other. If you're going to play together as a team, you've got to care for one another." In some ways, he was just echoing the words of Jesus, when Jesus said that people would know; there would be an unmistakeable recognition that we are his apprentices by the quality of our love and the size of our hearts. When they see that they will know. But let's be honest, sometimes, love hurts and relationships are hard and we get offended.When that comes we have to choose between murder or reconcilation. And I'm only half kidding. God is looking for reconcilers to be the light of the world.

Send me a Text Message!If we look at Jesus' example we would have to say that of all his names, Father is God's favorite.  In the Old Testament God was called Father, only 7x.  Jesus refers to God as Father 17x in the Sermon on the Mount alone! The gospels record over 200x's that Jesus called God Father. God's our Father. In Jesus day, those words were  revolutionary. Never before had that been the primary way of viewing God, but it shaped everything Jesus said and did, especially his prayer life.  And then this amazing thing happens, he passes it on to us. "Not only my Father," Jesus says, "your Father. He's your Abba, Papa, Daddy God." Prayer may at times be more than, but it will never be less than an on-going and on-growing personal relationship with your Father God. So climb up on his lap and pray!

Send me a Text Message!Listen God is so good. I understand, every tragedy, every hurt, every funeral and every divorce; every disappointment seems to be marketing for unanswered prayer and unanswered prayers cause us to question the limits of God's goodness. But God's goodness has no limits. Not only can He help you, He wants to help you. Now I have to be honest, there are some prayers He will never answer, because He has something better in mind for us. But as we go back to Luke 18, we are going to see that there is a prayer, we can pray, that God will always answer...and quickly."God give me justice over my adversary." Now that prayer may not mean what you think it means, so you should listen and then pray!

Send me a Text Message!In Luke 18, Jesus tells a story with a meaning, often called a parable. But in this case, Jesus starts with the "why," the meaning.  Often when Jesus told a parable,he wouldn't give the why. He wanted the listeners to grapple with the meaning without being fed the answer. But in this case, the why of the story is so important that Jesus tells it up front. "Don't miss this." He's saying. "I'm going to tell you a story and I want the story to always remind you of the fact that we should alwayspray and never give up. Never forget this. Always pray. Never give up.Basically Jesus is repeating a message we find over and over again in the Bible. "Don't lose heart." When it comes to prayer, find something good to pray for and then don't stop. Don't lose heart!

Send me a Text Message!We are God's children. We are not God's friends. We are not God's neighbors. We're His kids. That's what Jesus was teaching about prayer and that's why He said, "When you pray, say Father." Nobody else called God father. Jesus said, "When you pray say Father." Smtms we make prayer so complicated. There are depths to prayer that I may never fully explore or understand. But there is also meant to be a simplicity and an ease to prayer that is the ease of a kid coming to daddy. Papa God. Stop tryng to earn it.  We don't come into His presence because we earn it.  We come in because He loves us. We come in because it's home and you are His kid!

Send me a Text Message!Make no mistake Jesus wants the church to be a place of active, life-giving service and overflowing worship. He  wants it to be a community of grace and truth.  But few things move his heart like prayer. That's why I imagine a smile came to his face one day when one of his disciples came to him. Jesus had been out praying.  In fact it wouldn't surprise me if Jesus had been praying for his disciples, something like, "Father, help them. Sometimes they just don't get it. Father I want prayer to matter to them. I want being with you to matter to them, like it matters to me. So I imagine Jesus' smile when I read Luke 11:1, "Once when Jesus had been out praying, one of his disciples came to him as he finished and said, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples." I think that's a prayer that we should never stop praying, "Jesus teach me to pray!"

Send me a Text Message!When it comes to prayer, I'm not sure what you are asking for, what you are seeking, or who you are asking Jesus to open the door for, but what if, Jesus message to you in this episode is simply this. Don't quit asking. Don't stop seeking.Keep on knocking." The open door is coming.  Especially don't give up on someone you've been praying for...      Remember, when we pass judgement on someone, what are we doing? We're writing them off. We're giving up on-em. See in Jesus' Kingdom instead of giving up on people, we're gonna pray for people. Instead of writing them off, we're going to lift them up. Instead of telling them they can go to hell...we're gonna ask Jesus to bring heaven to them. Why? Because we want to be part of a move of God that loves people all the way to Jesus and because prayer really matters.

Send me a Text Message!I think if I lived in the days of Pharisees and Scribes, when I heard Jesus say, "Unless your righteousness exceeds the guys who do it for a living..." I would have heard, "Unless your righteousness goes to infinity and beyond, unless you get more righteous than you ever imagined you could be, you might as well forget it." But that's not Jesus message. Jesus wasn't just looking for a quantity of  righteousness, He was looking for quality of righteousness. He was looking for a different heart, that would love different.He was looking for people who didn't major in rules and regulations, but rather lived and loved different, against the flow. I hope by the end of this episode, you'll have that challenge in your mind. Let's live different!

Send me a Text Message!Tsaddaqim? What is that babbling? It's the Hebrew word for the "Righteous Ones." The next part of Jesus' teaching is all about the righteous ones. Who are the righteous ones? According to Jesus it wasn't the pharisees and the scribes (the proffesionally religious people). In this episode we'll unpack it with a look back at Isaiah's description of the righteous ones. Stuff like: Your light will break forth (sound familiar) and your gloom will be as bright as the noonday. When you call God will answer. He'll satisfy your deepest desires. In fact your life will be like a well-watered garden!Isaiah's words are spoken to broken people. But when God shows up, it's good news for broken people. It's good news because His love is amazing and He calls us to love like that. It's a whole different perspective on righteousness and it makes me want to be able to answer "YES!" to the question, "Are you a Tsaddaqim?" 

Send me a Text Message!You are the light of the world. And God has no other plan for the darkness. That's it.  No other plan.  Jesus said that when the Holy Spirit fills us up, we will have the power to become his witnesses. In other words, we will shine, and that's the plan;  the only plan, no back-up plan b. There are people in your neighborhood who are living in darkness. Paul said in Acts in 17:26-27, that God has set the times and the boundaries of where we live. Why? In the hope that when people seek God, that when they grope for God in the darkness, they will find him.And how do we let our light shine? By doing good deeds that reflect well on our Father in Heaven. Are you a do-gooder? 

Send me a Text Message!You are the light of the world. Isn't that amazing? Do you understand?  We're here to shine.  To be generous with our lives and do good deeds which shine the light on Jesus. You've heard this phrase before, but you may be the only Jesus that people ever see. What do they see when they see you? Think about the last few days, the last week, when people saw you, what did they see? How about in your home; or at church? What does your boss see at work? How about our neighbors, that one that's struggling with cancer, or the elderly wife caring for her husband with alzheimer's and her kids live out of state and sometimes she sits at night,  wondering if she can make it through one more day without help. What did they see in us?  Did we bring light to their darkness? I think Jesus' words are a call, a reminder that it's time to shine!

Send me a Text Message!All my life I have been attracted to the overflow, without walls principles and  stories in the Bible. One of my all time favorite prayers in the Bible is Paul's prayer in Ephesians 3 which ends with these words, "Now to God who is able to do exceedingly abundantly beyond all you ask for or can even imagine." That is sowithout walls! Jesus lived a life without walls; a life where just a touch can heal aheart; a life where forgiveness brings freedom and service brings joy; a life where tombs become wombs for second chances. But in so many ways, we live our lives within walls and end up disconnected from each other, from God and from life. Sometimes we build walls because it seems safe, but it's really just lonely. One of the ways we build walls is when we judge. That's what this one is all about! 

Send me a Text Message!"You are the salt of the earth." Those are Jesus' words. Think about this, when salt is working, you can't see it. Where are you being salt? Salt-work is annymous acts of kindness. It's backstage work that doesn't mind missing the applause of the crowds; It's working hard and speaking the truth..in love; It's befriending someone who doesn't deserve a friend. It's being real, even when you think no-one's  watching. Salt work is living proof of a loving God. Salt work is simply what happens when a transformed heart comes into contact with others. So where are you being the salt of the earth? Our world desperately needs more salt!

Send me a Text Message!We need more than bread to thrive. Jesus said that we need every word that comes from the mouth of God! We need more than food-stuff for our stomachs,  more than comfort-stuff, more than significance stuff; we even need more than  relational stuff in order to thrive. A live that thrives will involve a live that is  continually feeding on the words of God. And remember, eating God's words  involves more than listening and learning. Both listening and learning are  important, but they are incomplete until we lean in. Leaning in, is the place where we become do-ers of the word and not hearers only. It's the place where our lives change by the power of the Spirit in partnership with the Word of God. In this episode, I'm challenging us to consider leaning in by asking God to take us out of the center of our lives, so that we can be a blessing to those around us. 

Send me a Text Message!We've been talking about the beatitudes as a pathway to God's blessings. The blessings of God found in the Kingdom of God are amazing, but they rarely come easy. They require a "don't quit grit" that says, no matter what I'm going for it. And it all starts with "Blessed are the poor in Spirit." Blessed are the desperate, the begging poor in spirit. If you are poor in spirit, desperately broken, barely hanging on to a thin rope of hope, blessed are you. If you don't quit, blessing is on the way. When Jesus came on the scene announcing that the Kingdom of Heaven was here, the people understood him to say, "It's a new day. I know life has been hard, oppression, poverty, crucifixions every day. But listen, don't quit; a new day is dawning!"That's my hope and message in this episode. Don't quit, don't you dare quit!

Send me a Text Message!In the last episode, you listened to my message on worry. Well it was actually Jesus' message on trusting God so that we don't worry. But there is a six word challenge in Jesus' words on worry, and it's a challenge that we didn't uncover in the last episode. We'll probably  hit these six words again in a future message, but they are so important, so before we go back to our review of chapter 5 and being the light of the world, I just want to give you this six word challenge that is so vital to a non-anxious, worry-free life; "Seek first the kingdom of God."Seek first the Kingdom of God. Make that Kingdom your first thing and listen, there can only be one "first" thing!

Send me a Text Message!At Calvary this last weekend, we dove deep into the subject of worry and we celebrated communion. You might be surprised how much those two are woven together. You know as I was working on this message, something occured to me. As we look at the whole of Jesus' mountain top message, the beatitudes take up 8 verses. Reconciliation and forgiveness gets 7 verses' adultery and divorce 6 verses. Prayer is really important, it shows up twice and in total gets 14 verses. Giving gets 7 and judging 6.  Worry gets 10 verses and they aren't short!As Jesus lays out his vision for a new Kingdom...one which gets a lot of his time is worry. Basically he's saying, "In my Kingdom, life can be lived...worry-free." Do you believe that? 

Send me a Text Message!There is a booklet which has been used by God to lead many people to believe in Jesus. It's called the "The Four Spiritual Laws." Maybe you've read it. The first law is this, "God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life." I believe that law is true, especially looking back. But what if the flip-side is also true? God loves you and has a difficult plan for your life.Not too many Xtian best-sellers incorporate that into their title.  Not too many songs about the God who plans to make our lives difficult; and if he really loves us and is really pleased by us...well get ready for really difficult. But perhaps that's what Jesus meant when he said, "Blessed are those who are persecuted..." Don't skip this one...just because you don't like the title. :)

Send me a Text Message!As we come to the last of eight beatitudes we arrive at what I call the “Thanks-No-Thanks” beatitude. And listen I'm not saying that Jesus saved the best for last, I even hesitate to say that it's the most important blessing, because they are all so important. Remember it's a process, and as a journey, all the steps are necessary. But this one, #8, in our world today, it's so key that understand it's a step to becoming the light of the world. We cannot shrink back from this last step, if we want to be part of Jesus' Kingdom-Story. And as you listen, listen for the challenge that will help us persevere in persecution. It will come in the form of a prayer. "God cross out the "I" in my life." 

Send me a Text Message!Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are the peacemakers for they will resemble their Father in heaven. Blessed are the peacemakers for they will remind people of their big brother Jesus. Are you a peacemaker? Is the family resemblance growing? Take a moment and think of a hard relationship; someone who has hurt you, disappointed you. Do you look like Jesus to them? Will a point come when they can say to you...this is what I want to hear people say to me: "I see Father God's face in you. I see Jesus' heart in you. I see the fullness of the Spirit in you."I mean, is there anything the world needs more than peacemakers in this moment?

Send me a Text Message!What do we need more in our world right now, than peace? We are so quick to draw lines, so easily prodded into conflict. We need peace. I think everyone is seeking it, but few attain it, and keeping it is all too rare. But here's the problem; we have difficulty finding peace, because we are looking for peace in the absence.  That's how we define peace, right? Peace comes from absence; the absence of noise or the absence of storms, or conflict. But when Jesus talked about peace, he had in mind the Hebrew word shalom. Shalom is well-being in the widest sense of the word. Shalom is the blessing of God whch sums up all other blessings. Shalom is more about fullness than emptiness. Let's stop looking for peace in the absence and start seeking His fullness. Peace doesn't come from absence...

Send me a Text Message!Perhaps the first step to purity is seeking God. As we seek God, we come near to Him, and discover how much He loves us and our hearts  begin to burn for Him. In fact to be pure in heart Soren Kierkegaard said is to want one thing, to be undivided.  Or we have said it this way, "To be pure in heart is to have an unrestrained affection for God.  So let me ask you what is restraining your affection for God? When God comes close, He begins to burn away the junk that is restraining our affection for Him. But don't expect the burning to be entirely comfortable. He is a refiner's fire. It has to happen to prepare the way, prepare our hearts. It's not optional so, so we have to decide, when God comes close, will I let the fire burn?

Send me a Text Message!So let me ask you, when it comes to purity, what images come to your mind? What images, what thoughts, what emotions come to mind and heart when I say that we are diving again into purity?  There is a call to purity woven throughout scripture. It's all over the place. Let me tell you upfront. The primary issue of purity is where am i seeking life? If I primarily seek life in my job, or in friends, or in the adrenaline rush of adventure, or in my marriage, or in the weekend, or in success, or in accumulating all the stuff my hands can hold, sooner or later my quest will lead to an impure heart. Where am I seeking life?

Send me a Text Message!Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. I want to see God. I believe that our world today desperately needs people who seek and see God.  Jesus said that the pure in heart will see God. The purity of heart that He is seeking is both a quality of heart and a quantity of heart. In this episode, we will dive a bit into the idea of a quantity of heart. In the Greek the word for purity in Matthew 5:8 is the Greek word Katharsos. It literally means "unmixed." For example 100% pure gold is unmixed gold. A pure heart is not only sinless. It is also single; it desires one thing.Pure hearts are 100% all-in for Christ. It is not just obedience, it is passion. At the end of episode, I'll ask you to fill in the blank of the sentence, "I am devoted to God and _________. What goes in the blank for you? How much of your heart's passion is preoccupied with the blank?